Morning musings

Walked out my door at 6 a.m. to head to San Buenaventura State Park for a walk/run and ran smack into ESPN’s Ed Werder. I first met Ed years ago when we were both covering the Cowboys’ Super Bowl teams of the early 1990s. Since then, it seems like we usually run into each other at various Marriott concierge lounges and exercise rooms across the country. Ed looked a little bleary-eyed this morning, but he perked up once he found some Starbucks in the lounge.

Back home, I walk more than run, but doing the later is a lot easier when it’s 72 degrees. My typical California workout: 30 minutes of walking at a brisk pace, followed by 30 minutes of running at a snail’s pace. The concrete path I use weaves through the San Buenaventura State Park just in front of the beach.

The surf is up in the morning and there’s always 20 or more guys and gals out there, bobbing up and down in their black skin suits like buoys. I’ve never surfed, but I’d love to try it. Body surfing will do for now, though. (Don’t tell my boss, but I hope to do some of that later today after the Parcells/Jones news conference.)

Predicted number of T.O.-related questions today: 25. Predicted number of questions about Keith Davis and his shaky shooting story: 15. Predicted number of times Jones calls Oxnard “Ox-Nerd”: 10.

After our visit at Duke’s last night, Mrs. O and I walked along the beach as the sun set and the waves roared. Accompanying us was another school of porpoises.

Left over L.A. tidbit. If you’re a fan of punk rock group The Ramones, you might want to schedule a trip to the Hollywood Forever Cemetary to check out Johnny Ramone’s cenotaph. It’s topped by a lifesize black statue of Ramone on his knees playing his famous Mosrite Ventures II Model guitar. Ramone died on Sept. 15, 2004

in his L.A. home after a five-year bout with prostate cancer. You can find the cenotaph next to the marker for Hattie McDaniel, whose portrayal of Mammy in “Gone with the Wind” earned her an Oscar for best-supporting actress. I’m not a big fan of The Ramones, but I think McDaniel was super in GWTW.

According to the California Association of Realtors, the median home price for a single-family home (no condos) in Ventura County is $684,070.

The Cowboys are leaving Oxnard after this season to begin a five-year training-camp stint in San Antonio. In a front-page story in the Ventura County Star today, Cowboys fan Ed Arreola was quoted as saying, “It’ll be sad,” when the go. “Oxnard is making a big mistake.” Sorry, Ed, but I don’t think Oxnard has anything to do with it. Jerry Jones never wanted to leave San Antonio in the first place. Plus, he got a sweatheart deal from Mayor Phil Hardberger. With that said, Oxnard never had a chance of keeping the ‘Boys.

The gangs all here: Express-News sports columnist Buck Harvey and photographer Delcia Lopez arrived yesterday. Buck’s the best and I always enjoy working with Delcia. Look for their work in Saturday’s paper and on mysanantonio.com.

Express-News sports department clerk Leo Leija, aka The Man Who Really Runs the Department, reports that John Hines’ retirement luncheon at the Menger Hotel yesterday was a big hit with the guest of honor.

According to surfline.com, James George Janos, aka Jesse “The Body” Ventura, took his stage wrestling name from Ventura, Calif.